SYDNEY, March 7 (Reuters) - Australian job advertisements in newspapers and on the Internet slipped in February, a sign that firms were unsettled by turbulence in financial markets and a gloomy global outlook.
A monthly survey by Australia and New Zealand Banking Group ANZ.AX showed total job advertisements fell 1.2 percent to 154,748 per week on average in February, from January when they increased by 0.9 percent.
Ads were still 8.2 percent higher on February last year.
Internet ads dropped by 1.3 percent in February, while newspaper ads rose 6.9 percent. Newspaper ads have been in decline for years and account for only a fraction of the total.
"The fall in job ads in February may reflect some caution on behalf of businesses amid heightened financial markets volatility and negative news flow on the global economy," said Warren Hogan, ANZ's chief economist.
"It could also partly reflect the tricky nature of seasonal adjustment at this time of year," he added. In original terms, ads climbed 30 percent in February, from January which is seasonally a quiet month.
Official measures of employment have surprised with their strength for much of last year and pushed the jobless rate down to 5.8 percent.
The Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) has responded by cutting its forecast for unemployment and cited the resilience of the labour market as an argument against the need for further cuts in interest rates.
The February jobs report is due on March 17.